Track skate



g- 3 1- E. M. WELCOX 2,170,523

TRACK SKATE Filed Oct; 26, 1936 Patented Aug. 22, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 8 Claims.

The present invention relates to wedge members and more in particular to track skates serving as wedge members for retarding the movement of railway cars and the like.

Among the objects of the present invention is to provide a novel track skate serving as a wedge member for retarding the movement of railway cars and the like, which is simple in construction and economical to manufacture, and one which,

- because of its particular construction, is adapted for use over long periods of time.

As is well known, track skates are used in railway terminals and the like where it is desired to retard the movement of railway cars on open end tracks, such members serving as an abutment for one or more wheels of the railway car and frictionally cooperating with the rails, which friction retards the movement of these cars on the tracks. Considerable difiiculty has been experienced heretofore in the construction of track skates inasmuch as present-day car loadings are such as to cause excessive friction between the skates and the rails whereby excessive heat is created, thus causing deterioration of the skates necessitating their immediate replacement. The excessive loading of these track skates takes place on the approach portion. thereof which has been usually formed with a sloped approach surface tapering down to a thin edge at the extreme end of the skates. This thin section of metal is insuflicient to withstand the heat created by the frictional contact between the skates and the tracks, which results in damage to the same. Another objectionable feature of the skates which have been used heretofore is that the same are merely placed upon the head of the rails without any securing means therebetween, and when the wheels of the cars contact such skates the same are usually knocked from the rails, thus: permitting the unauthorized movement of the cars over the rails,

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a novel track skate of such a construction that the same is not damaged because of the heat resulting from the frictional engagement between the same and rail when the car wheel initially engages the approach portion thereof.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a track skate of novel construction which is adapted to grip the rail to secure the same thereto during movement of the car wheel onto the same.

The present invention also comprehends the,

idea of including the two novel features above described in a track skate whereby the same is; capable of withstanding hard usage over a considerable length of time without requiring replacement. 1

Other objects, features, capabilities and advantages are comprehended by the invention, as will later appear and as are inherently possessed thereby.

Referring to the drawing:

Figure 1 is a fragmentary View in side elevation of a rail having mounted thereon a track skate made in accordance with the present invention;

Figure 2 is a fragmentary top plan view of the rail of Figure 1 disclosing the track skate of said figure disposed thereon;

Figure 3 is a view in cross-section taken in the plane represented by line 3-3 of Figure 1 of the drawing; and

Figure 4 is a view in cross-section taken in the plane represented by line 44 of Figure 1 of the drawing.

Referring now more in detail to the drawing, a track skate made in accordance with the present invention is referred to generally as 2 and is disclosed in the drawing as being mounted upon the head 4 of a rail 6. The track skate comprises a wheel supporting portion 8 and an approach portion l0, these portions being integrally formed to include the track engaging body portion [2 which is provided with the under surface l4 disposed substantially in a plane and which contacts with the upper'surface of the rail head 4, this surface l4 being provided with a curved portion H5 at the front end of the skate whereby the same is free to move over minor obstructions on the rail surface as Well as to negotiate the rail joints over which the same slides.

The rail engaging body of the skate at the approach portion is formed with a cut-out or slot extending from the extreme edge of the approach portion inwardly for a substantial portion of the length thereof to provide marginal surface areas 2t? and 22 only at this end in order to prevent damage to the skate when load transferred from the car is applied thereto. It will be noticed that the end of the approach portion as at 24 is of substantial thickness so that the marginal sections presenting the surfaces 20 and 22 for contact with the surface of the rail are of rather large cross-sectional area which provides sufficient metal to prevent. overheating of that part of the skate, which would damage, the same by causing the end to Warp or become burred. This cut-out or slot l8 therefore maybe said to provide a U-shaped part at the end of the track engaging body portion I2 of the skate. This approach portion is provided with the sloped surface 26 over which the wheel passes, this surface extending to and merging with a substantially continuous curved surface 28 which is formed in part as at 30 in the rail engaging body portion [2 and in part as at 32 on an abutment 34 which extends upwardly from the track engaging body portion I2 on one side thereof at the wheel supporting portion, this abutment being provided with the opening 36 to decrease the amount of metal used in the construction of the skate, thus decreasing the weight of the finished product and making it convenient to move the same from place to place. The continuous curved surface 28 forms an abutment 38 with the inclined surface 2% of the approach portion, which effectively prevents movement of the wheel rearwardly once the same has passed over the surface 25 and into engagement with the surface 28.

As heretofore pointed out, difficulty has been experienced in the past in that track skates which have been ursed have fallen from the rails by initial contact of the car wheels therewith. This has resulted in damage to the same where parts thereof have overlain the rails, and of course has resulted in unauthorized movement of the cars, which movement it has been .desired to retard. In order to overcome this difficulty, the present invention includes means whereby the skate is frictionally secured to the rail head to prevent lateral movement or displacement thereof when the same is initially engaged by the wheel. Such means in the present embodiment comprises in part a flange 48 which extends throughout the entire length of the track skate from the approach to the wheel supporting portion and which depends from the rail engaging body portion i2. On the opposite side of the wheel supporting portion 8 is a flange construction comprising the spaced flange members 42 and 44 between which is a movable flange 46. This movable flange 46 is provided with spaced openings, such as 48, parts of which openings are in the form of enlarged recesses 59 and parts of which, as at 52, are slightly larger than the shanks of bolts 56 and 56 which extend therethrough for movably securing the flange it in association with the wheel supporting portion it). Each of the bolts 54 and 56 is of similar construction and is formed with a threaded shank 58 and a head '66, the threaded shank threadedly engaging in the Wheel supporting portion l8. Disposed adjacent the head fill is a spring abutment washer 62 adapted to serve as a stop for a coil spring 65 encircling the shank of the bolt, the other end of this coil spring being disposed within a recess 50 and abutting the inner end thereof. It will therefore be seen that the coil springs 64 serve to move the flange it into engagement with one side of the rail head i and to draw the depending flange 40 into engagement with the other side of the rail head 4. By providing a movable flange 46, together with resilient means for moving the same, the track skate is adapted for use on various rails in which there is a difference in size, shape and width of the heads thereof. This construction also provides at all times sufficient frictional engagement between the skate and the rail head to prevent lateral displacement or movement of the skate at the time that the wheel engages the approach portion and is passing upwardly over the inclined vsurface 26 thereof.

It has been found that when the features as above described have been incorporated in a track skate of the general design herein discussed, that the same can be used over a considerable length of time without damage thereto, and the trackman using the same can rest assured that the same will always maintain its position under all conditions to effectively stop the moving car at the point desired. The present skate is preferably of cast metal and can be much more economically manufactured than track skates which are now in use. The amount of friction per square unit of contact surface between the approach portion and the rail head is much less than has been experienced heretofore, with the result that a skate made in accordance with the present disclosure can be used for a great length of time without repair and without damage thereto. The service and equipment costs are very small, and when the replacement value of one of these skates is taken into consideration, and also the fact that oftentimes heretofore a skate was used only once or twice before it was replaced, it can be readily appreciated that the savings because of the use of the present design are rather substantial over a period of time.

While I have herein described and upon the drawing shown an illustrative embodiment of the invention, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited thereto but may comprehend other constructions, arrangements of parts, details and features without departing from the spirit of the invention.

I claim:

1. A track skate comprising a wheel supporting portion having a surface for receiving the tread of a wheel, an approach portion, a flange extending on one side of said skate and depending from said portions, a flange disposed on the other side of said wheel supporting portion, said flange comprising fixed and movable parts, and resilient means between said wheel supporting portion and said movable part for moving said part into engagement with said rail to hold said skate in wheel receiving position on said rail.

2. Atrack skate comprising a wheel supporting portion having a surface for receiving the tread of a wheel, an approach portion, a flange extending on one side of said skate and depending from said portions, a flange disposed on the other side of said wheel supporting portion, said flange comprising fixed and movable parts, means for securing said movable part to said wheel supporting portion, and resilient means supported by said means for moving said movable parts into engagement With said rail to hold said skate in wheel receiving position on said rail.

3. A track skate comprising a wheel supporting portion having a surface for receiving the tread of a wheel, an app-roach portion, a flange extending on one side of said skate and depending from said portions, a flange disposed on the other side of said wheel supporting portion, said second flange comprising fixed and movable parts, spring abutment means secured to said fixed part, and resilient means disposed on said abutment means and between the same and said movable part for moving said part into engagement with said rail to hold said skate in wheel receiving position on said rail.

4. A track skate comprising a wheel supporting portion having a. surface for receiving the tread of a wheel, an approach portion, said portions forming an abutment therebetween, said approach portion having a cut-out extending in- Wardly substantially to said abutment, a flange extending on one side of saidskate and depending from said portions, a flange disposed on the other side of said wheel supporting portion, said flange comprising fixed and movable arts, and resilient means between said Wheel supporting portion and said movable part for moving said part into engagement with said rail to hold said skate in wheel receiving position on said rail.

5. A track skate comprising a wheel supporting portion having a surface for receiving the tread of a wheel, an approach portion, said portions forming an abutment therebetween, said approach portion having a cut-out extending inwardly substantially to said abutment, a flange extending on one side or" said skate and depending from said portions, a flange disposed on the other side of said wheel supporting portion, said flange comprising fixed and movable parts, means for securing said movable part to said wheel supporting portion, and resilient means supported by said means for moving said movable parts into engagement with said rail to hold said skate in wheel receiving position on said rail.

6. A track skate comprising a wheel supporting portion having a surface for receiving the tread of a wheel, an approach portion, said portions forming an abutment therebetween, said apphoach portion having a cut-out extending inwardly substantially to said abutment, a flange extending on one side of said skate and depending from said portions, a flange disposed on the other side of said wheel supporting portion, said second flange comprising fixed and movable parts, spring abutment means secured to said fixed part, and resilient means disposed on said abutment means and between the same and said movable part for moving said part into engagement With said rail to hold said skate in wheel receiving position on said rail.

'7. A track skate comprising a wheel supporting portion having a surface for receiving the tread of a wheel, an approach portion, a rail engaging flange extending on one side of said skate and depending therefrom, a non-resilient movable rail engaging flange disposed on the other side of said skate, means for mounting said last-named flange for movement laterally with respect to said skate, and resilient means for urging said last-named flange into engagement with the side of said rail to hold said skate in wheel receiving position on said rail.

8. A track skate comprising a Wheel supporting portion having a surface for receiving the tread of a wheel, an approach portion, a rail engaging flange extending on one side of said skate and depending therefrom, a rail engaging flange of substantial thickness and length disposed on the other side of said skate, means for mounting said last-named flange for movement laterally with respect to said skate, and resilient means for urging said last-named flange into engagement with the side of said rail to hold said skate in wheel receiving position on said rail.

EDGAR M. WILCOX. 

